The Campaign for Black Male Achievement has been a proud partner with Values Partnerships and Paramount Pictures on "Across The Fence", a national campaign to promote the highly-anticipated film "FENCES" starring Denzel Washington and Viola Davis.

In advance of its official theatrical release on Christmas Day, we invite you to join us for a special call with Denzel Washington himself on Thursday, December 22nd at 7:30 p.m. EST to offer insights into the production of the film, and to thank all of you for supporting it and the #AcrossTheFence campaign. The call will also feature CBMA CEO Shawn Dove, and Values Partnerships Founder/CEO Joshua DuBois.

Click Here to get a free organizing guide and join the ranks of those mentoring across America in the 2017 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Mentor Weekend Program.

"With violence in cities escalating and failure in schools increasing, officials have now realized that they cannot be successful developing youth without an intentional and focused mentoring effort as part of a comprehensive plan to reduce youth violence and improve communities.

The societal, peer and negative media forces competing for our children's time and energies are just too strong and unrelenting for youth to overcome without a structured, consistent, positive mentoring program to support them.

It is unfortunate that street gangs "run better mentor programs" than most churches and schools, and that most drug dealers are better mentors than church members and community members. Until this changes, we have almost no hope!"

Phillip Jackson

Chairman of the Board

The Black Star Project

773.285.9600

On the 2017 MLK Mentor Weekend:

Friday - Show a film or documentary to youth about their history and/or their service to community and country.

Saturday - Complete a community service project with children, the homeless, ex-felons, new immigrants or senior citizens.

Sunday - Take A Young Person to Worship at a mosque, synagogue, temple, church or to a quiet place.

Monday - A Day of Mentoring as you choose with food, fun, speakers and information.

Click Here to register your organization, church or school and your city for the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Mentor Weekend. This program is open to men and women of all ethnicities and socio-economic backgrounds to work with youth of all ethnicities and socio-economic backgrounds.

The Young Black Men of Honor Mentor Program for Young Men 12 to 18 Years Old Represented Chicago Well at

Mentees in Young Black Men Of Honor Program

Being mentored at Black Star is fun as well as exciting!

Young men develop skills and enjoy the evening

New friends are made on this day.

Black Star Mentees won more prizes than any other group that night.

If you know of a young man between 12 and 18 years old who needs structure, guidance, discipline, encouragement and fun, please call 773.285.9600 and register him for the Young Black Men Of Honor mentor program. This program is supported by the Department of Family & Support Services and the Chicago Housing Authority.

Whether It Is "Watch Night" or "Freedom's Eve",

the Black Community

in America Celebrated

Freedom from Slavery as of

11:59 pm, December 31, 1862

"On that night, Blacks came together in churches and private homes all across the nation, anxiously awaiting news that the Emancipation Proclamationhad actually become law."

Slaves wait for 12:00 am, January 1, 1863, the first day of freedom for many Black slaves in America.

Written by Charyn D. Sutton

If you live or grew up in a Black community in the United States, you have probably heard of "Watch Night Services," the gathering of the faithful in church on New Year's Eve. The service usually begins anywhere from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. and ends at midnight with the entrance of the New Year.

There are two essential reasons for the importance of New Year's Eve services in African American congregations. Many of the Watch Night Services in Black communities that we celebrate today can be traced back to gatherings on December 31, 1862, also known as "Freedom's Eve."

On that night, Americans of African descent came together in churches, gathering places and private homes throughout the nation, anxiously awaiting news that the Emancipation Proclamation had become law. Then, at the stroke of midnight, it was January 1, 1863, and according to Lincoln's promise, all slaves in the Confederate States were legally free.

People remained in churches and other gathering places, eagerly awaiting word that Emancipation had been declared. When the actual news of freedom was received later that day, there were prayers, shouts and songs of joy as people fell to their knees and thanked God.

The earnings gap between African-American men and white men is the same now as it was 60 years ago for the median worker, according to a new study from University of Chicago economist Kerwin K. Charles and Duke University economist Patrick Bayer.

In the study, Charles, the Edwin and Betty L. Bergman Distinguished Service Professor and interim dean at the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy, and Bayer take an innovative look at federal data on the earnings of African-American and white men from 1940 through the Great Recession.

Their results provide a sobering picture of the persistence of income inequality for the vast majority of African Americans. The researchers also found the wage gap closing swiftly at the top of the earnings scale, suggesting that targeted, race-specific policies have been effective in expanding access to top-tier educational opportunities and high-wage professions.

Historically, most economists have focused on average earnings when comparing black and white wage differences-an approach that blurs the increasing divergence between the highest and lowest earners. Charles and Bayer decided to look at the data in a different way, ranking black and white men from 0-100 based on their earnings and then comparing them using such a scale.

The researchers also included "zeroes" in their analysis-men who are not part of the workforce and who have zero earnings. The resulting analysis captures the impacts of rapidly rising income inequality in the United States and provides a much starker representation of the widening gap between most African-American and white men.

"It's astounding that, in terms of economic rank, a black man in the middle of his economic distribution is no closer to his white counterpart in terms of earnings than was his grandfather," Charles said.

"In essence, the economic benefits that should have come from the substantial gains in education for black men over the past 75 years have been completely undone by the changing economy, which exacts an ever-steeper price for the differences that still remain," Bayer said.

There is no reason for your child to be left behind in school or in life. You can use this holiday season to take control of your child's education. Those who control the education of the children control the future of that race.

The Black Star Project's

Holiday University

is recruiting:

1) Boys and girls in 1st to 4th grade whose parents want them to become serious and effective readers for our Holiday University from 9:00 am to 11:00 am during the holidays!

2) Young women and young men in 5th to 8th grade for our Holiday University focusing on reading, writing, Black history, science and math from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm during the holidays.

Classes on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, December 27 through 30th, 2016 and Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, January 3rd through 6th, 2017.

All classes are at The Black Star Project, 3509 South King Drive, Chicago, Illinois. Please call 773.285.9600 to register for any of the above classes or for more information about these free programs. Parents must have a high level of support and engagement with our academic programs. Enrollment is limited.

Dear Supporter of Progress,

This may be your last chance this year to invest in the work of The Black Star Project!

You have seen our work and now we need your support. If you know of another organization doing the work of The Black Star Project, support them. If not, support us. But support somebody in the war for the hearts, minds and souls of our children, and our future as a race!

Wednesday, December 21, 2016

Do you have studious high school Juniors or Seniors who are positively active in the parks and community and are looking to compete (interview-style) for a $1,000 scholarship for college? Have them fill out this application and return to me via email. I will call you to interview you and decide which one will represent Cole Park in the Junior Citizen Competition. Thank you in advance.

The Harlem Fine Arts Show is the largest traveling African Diasporic art show and sale in the United States and has as its mission "to rekindle the creativity of the renaissance in arts and culture that swept through both Harlem and Bronzeville in the early part of the 20th Century."

Since its inception in New York in 2009, HFAS has attracted over 80,000 visitors, showcased hundreds of artists and galleries, and generated millions in art sales. The show debuted in Chicago in 2014, as one stop on a multi-city tour, that includes New York, Atlanta, Martha’s Vineyard, and Washington, D.C.

In my continuing effort to keep you informed regarding developments affecting the residents of the 34th District, I wanted to take a moment to thank you for your continued support.

My mission as your State Representative is to improve the quality of life for the communities we serve. We continue to work collectively with the communities making up the 34th District in order to strengthen community and governmental relations as we continue to put our families and communities first.

The work I am doing in Springfield seeks to improve the quality of our schools, strengthening the middle class by creating good jobs, bringing fiscal discipline to Springfield, and passing common sense public safety initiatives to make our streets safer.

Again, thank you for entrusting me with this great responsibility, and supporting the work that we do here in the 34th District.

Chicago's winter overnight parking ban is in effect. The ban affects parking on 107 miles of arterial streets and is enforced from 3 a.m. to 7 a.m. until March 31, 2017.

Violators face a minimum $150 towing fee, $60 ticket and a storage fee of $20 per-day, the city said. The vehicles will be towed to Pound 2 at 10301 S. Doty Ave. and Pound 6 at 701 N. Sacremento.

"During a snow storm it is critical that crews are able to plow and salt Chicago's main streets. This helps us restore the city to normal as quickly as possible, and ensures that buses can access routes to take passengers to work, school and along their daily routines," said Commissioner Charles L. Williams in a press release. "Residents can assist us in this effort by checking signs and following posted restrictions

Bikes & Books at Carter Temple

As we celebrate one of Chatham's greatest resources, our children, Carter Temple Church sponsors the "Christmas Bikes and Books" Campaign. The goal is to provide bikes and books to 100 children in the Chatham and surrounding communities. The items will be distributed during a holiday brunch on Saturday, December 17th from 10am-12pm at the church.

Please help us spread the word! If you know of any children in need of bikes and books, please ask them to contact the church office at 773.874.0175 to obtain an application.

Job Listings

CURRENT EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

The following positions are currently vacant within the Tollway

Human Resources will accept applications, with resumes from:

November 23, 2016 through December 8, 2016

JOB QUALIFICATIONS:

To be selected for a position, an applicant must (1) meet the minimum requirements of the job posting, (2) pass a written exam (if applicable), (3) satisfy a background check (which may be extensive), (4) pass an oral interview, during which the interviewer(s)will further evaluate the applicant's qualifications and (5) provide certified transcripts, certifications, and/or license upon candidate processing and/or transfer, if the position requires a degree, certification, and/or license.

Internal Applicants who are current employees must have worked in their current position long enough to pass probation to be eligible to apply for the position. In addition, applicants are also subjected to an internal investigation which includes an evaluation of their work record, safety and discipline records, their performance assessments and time and attendance records (including late starts and early quits) for the preceding 12 months. (Authorized absences will not be included for purposes of assessing whether attendance is satisfactory.)